GUWAHATI:
Terming the tragic flood situation in Dima Hasao a “man-made disaster”, former legislator and leader of the Autonomous State Demand Committee (ASDC), Samarjit Haflongbar has written to Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma urging him to take steps to curb massive extraction of riverstone, illegal mining of coal and smuggling of forest timber in the district.
“Uncontainable massive extraction of riverstone, illegal mining of coal and smuggling of forest timber under present North Cachar Hills Autonomous Council (NCHAC) chief executive member (CEM) Debolal Gorlosa has led to the disaster. These activities have increased water current besides weakening either side of riverbanks such as Jatinga, Mahur, Langting and other rivers along with other streams and tributaries,” wrote Haflongbar.
Continuous rainfall accompanied by thunderstorms triggered flash floods and massive landslides in the Dima Hasao district recently. As roads collapsed, railway tracks got washed away and bridges caved in, the district got cut off from the rest of state. Even as road communication was restored thorough the Lumding-Haflong road, many remote villages remain cut off due to landslides coupled with electricity and Internet cut.
“Earlier manual stone collection under containable manner with its restriction in bridge standing areas besides human-populated areas, are now replaced by extraction with using heavy machinery excavating the entire river bed. This needs to be stopped immediately for the greater interest of preserving the environment and maintenance of ecological balance besides giving full protection to human life from unexpected natural calamities such as floods,” he said through the letter.
Haflongbar also sought Rs 300 crore for restoration of road connectivity from the Chief Minister. “Under the circumstances, your esteemed privileges are requested to kindly look into the matter and sympathetically make necessary arrangements to provide a sufficient fund as stated considering the state of affair in top priority basis in the matter,” the letter read.
Haflongbar said the recent downpour has damaged both public and private properties in within Dima Hasao district, mainly in Haflong, Harangajao and Maibang sub-division such as Diger area covering Hajadisa and Wajao constituency besides nearby village areas.
“A large number of houses was either destroyed by landslides or washed away in swelling rivers of Mahur, Jatinga and other tributaries. Moreover, three individual buildings were also affected by in increasing Jatinga river water near Hamdhan Mohan Haflongbar bridge. Around 90 private houses of Haflong Muolhoi have been affected, some of them completely damaged by the landslide in the continuous downpour,” he said.
He also said that the irrigation bundh along with irrigation canals too have been damaged due to the torrential rain.
Thousands of bighas of paddy field covering Hajadisa, Nobdilangting, Drangbra, Wajà o, Kepre, Nablaidisa, Didambra, Drunbra, Digerma, Digerkeo, Doirangikro, Prasadimdik (Dimakro), Pathbra were damaged due to flash floods and landslides, he further informed.